chart I was cleaning up some old photos off my camera and I came across this. As a joke last year in the dorms, I collaborated with a few friends to pull a prank on everyone living on my floor. The story was that Georgia Tech Dining was trying to conserve water, and so therefore they would be testing a “water recycling system” (taking drainage from the toliets to use in the dining halls) in order to encourage students to flush when they use the restroom. It’s amazing how many people fell for this, putting up a sticker every time they flushed, especially considering it was an “honors dorm.” It’s probably even more embarrassing for Georgia Tech Dining. Anyways, my biggest contribution to the project was the “official flyer” seen at the bottom, complete with a toliet resting against the rotting...

So this week marks the beginning of my second year at Georgia Tech. In the past, I’ve said things like I’m “looking forward to this class” or “this could be interesting.” For the first time, I think I’m legitimately excited for a class. Does that make me a nerd? Absolutely, but that shouldn’t be a surprise if you’re reading this blog. The class is titled “Introduction to Computational Media,” but it doesn’t seem like an introduction at all considering it’s a second year, second level course. Looking at the schedule, there appears to be a lot of reading, but there are also a number of unusual topics and assignments, such as “Play Zork,” “Play The Legend of Zelda,” and most of all, “Homebrew Atari 2600 Development.” I’ve started making games before this class, but finally getting to make games for a class feels like a major progression from the first year of college into the second. The course was initially scheduled to be taught by Ian Bogost, but is now being led by Brian Magerko. Brian claims to specialize in “artificial intelligence for interactive storytelling.” As much as I was looking forward to a class with Dr. Bogost, I think it should still turn out...

jaxthumb1 I took this photo for a website I’m working on. Jacksonville is actually a pretty city from this angle. Taken from the Riverwalk at Friendship Park. Click the picture to download the full size (8394×1595), but let me know if you plan to use it in one of your own...